You've Waited Long Enough, Guess What I Brought Back?

At that moment, in a corner piled with construction materials somewhere behind, a pair of eyes were quietly watching everything unfold.

"Unbelievable... just who the hell is that guy?!"

"He actually dared to kill a Celestial Dragon directly!!"

Bani, a member of the Revolutionary Army who had been carefully hiding in the shadows, finally couldn't help muttering to himself after watching the group of slaves gradually disappear into the distance.

"And that guy indirectly freed all the slaves on the Bridge-on-the-Nation too."

"So as a Revolutionary Army member, me sneaking in here for so long—was it all for nothing?!"

Thinking this, Bani couldn't help blinking, at a loss for what to say in his heart.

Originally, as a Revolutionary Army member, his mission here was to bide his time and find a way to liberate the slaves.

But unexpectedly, everything he was supposed to do had been completely finished by some unknown powerhouse who appeared out of nowhere.

And he did it exceptionally well.

Far more direct and efficient than the plan Bani had originally envisioned.

Because of this, it couldn't help but make him feel that his painstaking efforts to infiltrate this place had turned out to be somewhat redundant.

"Ah, forget it. As long as those slaves are successfully freed, that's what matters."

"Whether it was me who did it or not isn't all that important."

Bani let out a faint sigh, silently comforting himself in his heart.

"But I still need to report this sudden situation back as soon as possible."

After all, even the Revolutionary Army wouldn't easily provoke those Celestial Dragons.

Yet unexpectedly, that powerhouse who had barged into the Bridge-on-the-Nation had directly beaten a Celestial Dragon to death.

And after killing him, he even hung the corpse on a lamppost.

Though Bani had felt excited and especially relieved seeing the Celestial Dragon killed, the consequences and impact of a Celestial Dragon's death were something no one could predict.

Thinking this, he immediately turned, pulled up his hood, and without hesitation, quickly left the place.

After Bani had gradually walked far away, from another dark corner piled with construction materials on the other side, a guy holding a camera suddenly popped out.

His clothes and appearance looked utterly unremarkable—short in stature, with a mustache by his mouth.

He stared in the direction where Will had last disappeared, his eyes both fearful and excited, unable to help muttering to himself:

"To accidentally capture so many shocking photos! This is absolutely amazing! FIRE!"

"But this place is way too dangerous! I gotta get out of here fast! FIRE!"

Then he carefully looked left and right, and after confirming there was no one else around, he quietly jumped out from the corner, protected his camera, and quickly fled the scene.

On the other side, Carina and Nami were still on the ship, some distance from the bridgehead.

Under a few drifting snowflakes, the two sat at a table on the deck, sipping steaming hot black tea, quietly waiting for their captain, who had left alone, to return.

During this time, the two had been fairly lucky, encountering no Naval Warships or other unfamiliar vessels passing by.

As time gradually passed, they began to occasionally take out binoculars, looking toward the Bridge-on-the-Nation, trying to spot that familiar figure in the sky.

But unfortunately, they hadn't seen him at all.

"Carina, do you think something unexpected happened..."

Nami, seeing that Will still hadn't returned after so long, couldn't help worrying.

Though Carina was also a bit concerned, she still smiled and reassured her:

"Don't worry, Nami. In this East Blue, I doubt anyone can threaten our captain's safety."

"You're right, Carina."

Just then, a familiar voice suddenly came from behind the two.

"Will?!"

Carina and Nami, hearing this, immediately turned their heads in surprise.

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

Will walked over with a smile and plopped down into his large chair.

Then he placed the small treasure chest he'd been holding onto the table and said in a rather mysterious tone:

"Guess what I brought back for you this time?"

"Huh?" Nami and Carina exchanged a slightly puzzled glance, then spoke in unison:

"Could it be some incredibly valuable treasure?!"

Hearing this, Will wore an expression that said "just as I expected," then replied ambiguously:

"That's not wrong to say. The thing in this chest really is worth a lot."

"Even the most ordinary kind can sell for at least a hundred million Berries."

"What?!"

Nami's eyes lit up as she lunged at the chest, repeating in shock:

"You're saying that anything in this chest is worth at least a hundred million Berries?!"

She knew that all the hard work she'd put in over the years hadn't even let her save up a full hundred million Berries.

And yet the stuff in this chest could casually sell for what took her years to accumulate.

That was just too absurd!

Meanwhile, Carina, hearing this, looked thoughtful.

She seemed to have a vague guess about what was inside.

Her expression turned quite surprised as she murmured to herself:

"Could it be...?!"

Seeing this, Will couldn't be bothered to let them keep guessing, so he reached out and opened the chest directly.

There were no glittering treasures, nor the unique scent of Berries.

Nami and Carina instinctively felt a bit disappointed.

But when they saw the strange fruit inside, they both froze in surprise.

"It really is... a Devil Fruit!!" Carina snapped back to reality and couldn't help but exclaim.

Nami, who had been stunned, immediately panicked upon hearing this and said:

"Huh? You mean this thing is the legendary Devil Fruit?!"

"The one that gives you all kinds of special abilities if you eat it?!"

Too shocked to contain herself, she even fired off questions to confirm.

"That's right!"

Carina nodded very firmly, her eyes full of curiosity as she carefully observed and said:

"This is the source of those Devil Fruit users' powers, the legendary Devil Fruit from the seas."

"Eating it grants some kind of special ability, rapidly boosting your strength."

"Although the eater is cursed by the sea, rejected by it, and can never swim again for life."

"Compared to the special ability gained, becoming a landlubber isn't really that unacceptable."

Hearing this, Will couldn't help but shake his head slightly and cut in:

"That's not quite accurate, Carina."

"Not every Devil Fruit, once eaten, can quickly enhance your strength."

"To determine whether the Devil Fruit in hand is useful to you,"

"or what specific ability it grants, and what side effects it has,"

"you usually need this."

With that, he pulled out the book he'd retrieved along with the Devil Fruit from his pocket and casually handed it to the two sitting beside him.